Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Under Cover

I see other independent authors doing stuff like this so: 

In the opinion of you my loyal and loving readership, which of these bleak, scary covers for my next ebook, VODKABERG, are the most appropriately and appealingly bleak and scary? 


Version 1: The Tram

                                                                   

Version 2: The Car 


                                                               


Version 3: The Road


Version 4: The Country
                                                     
                                                         

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

what, no option with a bunch of Russian tits????

Anonymous said...

Agreed with t'above.

Constructively, #2. Dem damn dirty Soviet hovels scare me. Gods know, I live in one.

Anonymous said...

the first or the fourth.

Anonymous said...

2,3,4 are the bleakest but i would chose 1. the others aren't dramatically bleak enough (or at all)

brian said...

2, no question. People live in that place! Scarier than Upstate New York.

English Teacher X said...

well, shit, there seems to be no clear consensus. In Version 2, that's an abandoned building, of which there were many in Vodkaberg. I guess v1 is nice because it has an old man carrying a plastic bag, which is also common in Vodkaberg.

Eve said...

V. 2

English Teacher X said...

The second one is very striking, I agree, but I'm afraid it's a little TOO apocalyptic.

Saz said...

I like the first one. The others are all bleak but they're snowy, which makes them less depressing.

As I remember from my own time in Russia, it's when the snow melts away that the full scale of the bleak scariness smacks you round the face.

I dunno, that's just what #1 reminds me of. Being happy cos the ice has gone, but depressed cos you can now see your surroundings in grisly detail.

English Teacher X said...

Maybe I should just do multiple covers, like they used to do with comics.

SovietCity said...

V2 looks good to me.

English Teacher X said...

Version 2 seems to be pulling into the lead, although I think it might make a better cover for Cormac McCarthy's THE ROAD. Maybe I'll do v2 for the ebook, v1 for the paperback.

Well-lighted Shadows said...

2 the car

Tim said...

2 definitely, as it seems to sum up about half of the pics you used to post on the blog while living there. If there were a back cover, you'd have to put some cleavage on it, as that would sum up the other half.

English Teacher X said...

I'll put some cleavage pictures on the inside, I guess

Anonymous said...

V3

Anonymous said...

I just finished 'Vodkaberg', found it hard to put down. Close to the end there is, intentionally or unintentionally, one spot where 'Samara' has not been replaced by 'Vodkaberg' - but I had correctly guessed that anyway, after googling for a large city on the Volga and ruling out Volgograd.
I'm still undecided whether I envy the author for 9 years of debauchery in Samara or pity him for his pathetic salary - more the former, I guess.

English Teacher X said...

ha, that's funny, thanks for the heads up. that's not exactly the best kept secret in the world.

kgaard said...

Hello English Teacher X ... I just finished "To Travel Hopelessly" and am awaiting Vodkaberg. Wonderful book. I like the Paul Theroux style of anti-travel writing. Suits my temperament perfectly. I am very curious to get to the Russian stuff as I have spent a fair bit of time in Ukraine and have been learning Russian for a couple years. We are about the same age and background so it's interesting to read your stuff and consider the parallel existence you've led. You've had a much better social life, that's for sure. Though I think I would have gone crazy living your life. I hate teaching. But clearly you have an openness to the world and experience that is a huge bonus from a reproductive fitness angle. Your books are inspiring me to get back on the road ...